1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a vehicle protection assembly preferably of portable, lightweight construction capable of being utilized with a variety of different automobiles or like vehicles and including an elongated protective member selectively positionable outwardly from an interior of the vehicle in overlying relation to exterior surfaces of the vehicle body.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is commonly recognized that automobiles and other vehicles suffer minor but annoying damage to the exterior surface portions thereof. Typically, such damage is caused by the doors of adjacently parked vehicles being carelessly opened when occupants enter or leave the adjacent vehicles. Naturally, a variety of other situations arise which may cause damage to the side or peripheral surface portions of the vehicle, such as by grocery or shopping carts running into the vehicle when the carts are not carefully attended. Regardless of the cause most vehicles, over a relatively short period of time can develop damage to exterior surface portions thereof. Moreover, when collectively considered, such exterior surface damage is unsightly and costly to repair.
In an effort to overcome such problems, there have been numerous attempts to design bumper or surface protecting strips, cushion devices and a variety of other protective structures. Typically such conventional devices are selectively positioned on the exterior of the vehicle in overlying, covering relation primarily to the vehicle doors, it being recognized such locations are most prevalent to receiving dents, scratches, etc. from adjacently positioned vehicles. In disposing known devices of the type set forth above in their protective position, one such category simply involves the temporary mounting of a padding or cushioning material in covering relation to the exterior surface being protected.
However, more complex protecting assemblies may involve the fixed and/or permanent attachment of a housing or casing to the vehicle. In use, a protective covering may be selectively positioned into and out of an overlying orientation relative to the surface being protected. In this latter category of devices, there exists recognized problems associated with mounting and/or installation, as well as efficiently locating such devices so that the protecting material can be properly positioned as intended. Also, these more complex protecting structures suffer from a lack of versatility in that they cannot be easily removed from one vehicle and mounted on or installed in another. Such versatility would of course be a distinct advantage in families having more than one automobile or other type of motor vehicle.
Accordingly, there is a significant and long recognized need for a vehicle accessory capable of being used with literally any type of automobile or like motor vehicle which serves to protect extensive areas of the exterior surface thereof. Such an assembly should demonstrate sufficient structural versatility to overcome many, if not all, of the disadvantages and problems recognized in conventional or known vehicle surface protectors. More specifically, an improved vehicle protection assembly of the type referred to herein may be transferred between a plurality of vehicles, by being formed of a lightweight, portable construction. This feature would enable users of such a preferred protection assembly to easily and quickly remove it from one vehicle for use on another vehicle, without being concerned with mounting or installation requirements.
Further, the overall structural and operative features of a preferred protection assembly should include an elongated protective element having sufficient flexibility and length, to provide for protection of a greater than normal exterior surface area of the vehicle. As such, the protective element should be capable of extending about at least a majority, if not the entire periphery of the vehicle, so as to better protect more surface area from contact by adjacently positioned automobiles or other vehicles. In addition, such a preferred vehicle protection assembly, while being portable, should be formed of a durable material thereby being capable of a long operable life, while being available to the consuming public at a reasonable price.
The present invention is directed to an assembly to protect exterior surface portions of an automobile or other vehicle from minor but sometimes costly damage. It is well known that surface damage is all to frequently caused by adjacently positioned vehicles, or other objects, forcibly coming into contact with the exterior surfaces of a parked vehicle. Such contact commonly occurs when occupants enter or leave the adjacent vehicle and when so doing, carelessly open the door too far.
In accordance with at least one preferred embodiment of the present invention, an elongated protective member is selectively disposed in an operative position wherein it overlies exterior surface areas of the vehicle which are most prone to being damaged, in the manner set forth above. As will be explained in greater detail hereinafter, the dimensions of the protective member are such as to overlie and thereby protect a xe2x80x9cmidlinexe2x80x9d surface area of the vehicle. The midline surface area may be more specifically defined as an external surface of the vehicle extending about at least a majority of its outer periphery and in surrounding relation to the vehicle. Further, the midline surface area may be located in a somewhat outwardly bowed or extended position on the vehicle. In such an orientation, the midline surface is the external area of the vehicle most likely to be contacted and therefore damaged, such as by the doors of adjacently positioned vehicles being opened in a careless manner.
More specifically, the assembly of the present invention comprises a housing having a substantially lightweight construction and otherwise specifically structured to be portable so as to be removably secured within the interior of the vehicle. The portable nature of the housing, as well as the other associated components of the protection assembly of the present assembly, allow it to be easily relocated into any number of different vehicles. As such, the portable nature of the protection assembly provides increased versatility by eliminating the necessity of permanently mounting the assembly to interior portions of a vehicle. Further, when not in use it may be stored in a more conventional storage area, such as the trunk of the vehicle, especially in situations where the vehicle is filled with occupants. When the vehicle is parked, the housing is removed from the trunk or other storage area, placed in a preferred, secured, location within the vehicle which best facilitates the deployment of the protective member from the housing.
The protective member, as set forth above, has an elongated configuration and in at least one preferred embodiment to be described hereinafter, is selectively positionable into either an operative position or a retracted position. In the retracted position, at least a majority or substantially the entire length of the protective member is disposed in a coiled orientation, wherein the length thereof is wound about itself in a compact array so as to require minimum volume for storage. When intended for use, the protective member is withdrawn from the interior of the housing through an appropriate access opening. Because of the portable nature of the protection assembly, the housing is best disposed on the interior of the vehicle to eliminate theft when the vehicle is unattended. Accordingly, the protective member, once disposed in the operative position, extends outwardly from the housing on the interior of the vehicle and passes to an exterior thereof, such as between a door and door frame. The thin, flexible construction of the protective member allows the door to be closed and locked in the conventional fashion. Further, in at least one embodiment of the present invention the protective member may also pass from to the exterior of the vehicle through a window while still allowing the window to be closed, for purposes of security.
One feature of the present invention is the extended longitudinal dimension of the protective member being sufficient to substantially surround the entire outer periphery of the vehicle in overlying relation to the midline surface area, as set forth above. Additional structural features of the protection assembly of the present invention include the provision of an attachment assembly. The attachment assembly is disposed and structured to maintain the protective member in its operative position, in surrounding relation to the periphery of the vehicle.
Moreover, one embodiment of the present invention comprises the attachment assembly having at least two attachment segments which are disposed in spaced relation to one another. The attachment segments are further disposed and structured to allow the protective member to be secured to itself, such as by the free vend thereof being removably secured to a spaced apart portion of a length of the protective member. The structuring of the attachment assembly is such that the protective member is maintained in the operative position, while allowing quick and easy separation of the attachment segments from one another when it is desired to dispose the protective member into the retracted position.
As will also be explained hereinafter, the protection assembly of the present invention further includes a connecting assembly which may comprise a drive structure including a biasing assembly associated therewith. The biasing assembly is interconnected to the protective member through a drive or support shaft or other interconnecting structure. Therefore, cooperative structuring between the biasing means, support shaft and protective member is such as to normally bias the protective member into the retracted position on the interior of the housing.
The protection assembly of the present invention therefore provides an efficient, low cost structure for protecting exterior surface areas of a vehicle along substantially the entire periphery thereof and especially along a mid-line surface area which is considered to be most frequently damaged by inadvertent yet forceful contact with adjacent vehicles or other structures. In addition, the portable nature of the protection assembly of the present invention serves convenient and cost saving advantage in that the housing and the protective member associated therewith can be quickly and easily removed from one vehicle and used in another. The necessity of permanently mounting a surface protecting structure on each of a plurality of vehicles is thereby eliminated.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more clear when the drawings as well as the detailed description are taken into consideration.